Vol. 124 No. 40 THE BACK MOUNTAIN'S NEWSPAPER SINCE 1889 December 8 - 13, 2013 The DALLAS POST . WILKES-BARRE, PA. WWW.MYDALLASPOST.COM AN EDITION OF THE TIMES LEADER "From unity Presented by Back Mountain Harvest Assembly, event is in its 20th year SARAH HITE Dallas Post Correspondent “The Gift,” present- ed by Back Mountain Harvest Assembly, is in its 20th year of produc- tion and, with an audi- ence of about 10,000 people over the course of three days, organizers trive to make the out- @ live nativity bigger nd better every year. The Christmastime event has come a long way since its first run, said Lead Pastor Dan Miller, who said the church wanted to find a way to give back to the community during the holiday season. “It was beyond hokey,” said Miller of the first per- formance. “We decided 13 days before Christmas to do a live nativity, and we did it four days before Christmas so we only had about a week to put it together.” He said the perfor- PETE G. WILCOX FILE PHOTO | THE TIMES LEADER Patty Petts, playing an angel, sings ‘Mary Did You Know?’ to Sarah Makarewicz who plays Mary in the 2012 production ‘The Gift’ presented at the Back Mountain Harvest Assembly Church in Trucksville. Enjoying holiday spirit BILL TARUTIS | FOR THE DALLAS POST : UNICO cheerleaders dance to ‘the tune of Jingle Bell Rock’ at halftime of the 2013 UNICO Game at Lake-Lehman High School football field. For a story and additional photos, please turn to page 13. DALLAS TOWNSHIP Dallas supervisor says township is in good financial shape @ DENNEY allas Post Correspondent Dallas Township is in good shape financially, Supervisor Bill Grant told residents at the Dec. 2 board meeting. He also announced that the preliminary budget for the borough includes no tax increase and the township is ending the year in the black this year. The 2014 budget includes changes to employee healthcare benefits and workers’ compensation insurance for firefighters. Grant said the township will also replace several older police vehicles and pur- chase a mini dump truck for the road department. Two engineering firms made presentations to the board aas both firms are seeking a contract to provide code inspections for the township. Representatives of Barry Isett and Associates and BWH Construction Consultation Services, Inc. made a case for using their services. Gregg Parlick, repre- senting Barry Isett, said that his company was a full-service engineering firm. He said the com- pany is growing and is in the process of opening an office in Forty Fort. Parlick said the com- pany has a grantsmanship program which provides pro bono grant-writing assistance to clients. “We will put in grants for you,” Parlick said. Jason Humenanski of BWH Construction also NL made a presentation. He told the board that his company’s advantage is in employees who had hands-on experience within the fields they inspect. “If an inspection is called in in the morn- ing, we're out the same day,” Humenanski said. Supervisor Liz Martin explained that the presen- tations were unsolicited by the township and the township appreciated the representatives attending the meeting to explain their services. IF YOU GO... What: “The Gift, a live outdoor nativity resented by Back Mountain Harvest Assembly Where: Back Mountain Harvest Assembly 340 Carverton Road, Trucksville When: Performances will be held at 6 and 8 p.m. Frid . Dec. 13 and Saturday, Dec. 14; and at 6 p. m. Sunday, Dec. 15 Info: For more information, call the church at 570- 696- 1128 mance garnered an audi- ence of about 200 people that first weekend and estimated it cost under $1,000. “We were holding flash- lights for lighting,” he said. Now the larger than life event can seat 3,000 people at one show, and the church hosts five per- formances in one week- end. Miller said the pro- duction costs can range between $30,000 and $50,000, depending on the year. “That first year God sent the right people, and the following year we had about 1,000 people come,” he said. “But the show was better, too. We started working on it in August, not 13 days before Christmas.” Three years ago, Miller said “The Gift” had its - about 13,500 people in three days. Hundreds of people were turned away from the event, as there wasn’t enough space to accommodate them. “We had the warm weather. I'll never forget it,” said Miller. “It was 48 degrees (Fahrenheit) on a Friday night, at the second performance. It’s always cold at the sec- ond performance. That’s when we had 4,000 peo- ple show up.” With such a large crowd, Miller said it’s important to keep chang- ing the show - adding a new segment here, chang- ing a dance sequence there. This year the pro- duction will debut its first piece of original music written by members of the church. “We want to get away from having to ask per- mission for music and largest crowd in history : “The Gift’ things,” said Miller. “We'd like to one day have our own original show that we could trademark.” “The Gift” has a staff of about 300 people - there are more than 100 actors in the show and count- less other production and general laborers to help ensure the annual event goes smoothly. “There are volunteers who make 5,000 cook- ies to give away after the show,” he said. Even with all the changes and tweaks made to the show, Miller said the message of the story of the nativity and the birth of Jesus remains as powerful as ever. “We've had a lot of unique experiences here,” he said. “Once there was a little boy, he was only about 7 or 8 years old, and after the show was over, he was jumping on a hay bail, tugging on his mother’s coat. His eyes were as big as saucers and he said to his mother, ‘Now I know what it’s all about!” Miller said some- times the meaning of Christmas gets muddled with the “gifts and par- ties and the tinsel and See GIFT | 8 Submitted photos Swing dance partners enjoy an evening at the John Paul Il Center in Dallas in October. Swing dancing is best at Christmas time SARAH HITE Dallas Post Correspondent Christopher Carr has done the Lindy Hop from Boston to Milwaukee, and now he wants to help the Back Mountain com- munity get in step with the beat of the big band. Carr, 49, invites the public to share in his pas- sion for swing dancing at a Christmas Swing Dance at the John Paul II Center (formerly Gate of Heaven School) on Saturday, Dec. 14. He has held two previ- ous events at the John Paul II Center with the hopes of meeting new people and starting a swing dance following in the area. “It’s a different kind of In another item of busi- ness, Martin said the township is looking to change banks. The town- ship currently uses PNC Bank nut PNC announced that $300 in monthly fees will be applied to the account beginning in January. Martin said the board is looking for better options and that she has found at least one finan- cial institution which will provide services without a fee. Discussion continues dance environment here. The people who dance do a mixed ballroom type of thing, such as the fox trot and the tango and the waltz,” said Carr. “You can do that at any other dance studio in the area. I am trying to create a swing venue for people.” Carr may have gotten interested in swing danc- ing during the revival of the dance genre in the late 1990s, but the Harveys Lake resident remained a faithful swing dancer long after the craze was kaput. “It’s personal. Swing is the music plus the danc- ing - it’s a whole different experience, just learning it,” he said. “You have to get your body habitu- ated with the rhythm. on the addition of a school resource officer at the Dallas School District. The officer would work 75% of the time for the school district and 25% of the time for the town- ship. A grant has been applied for but township officials agreed they need more clarification on details of the agreement before committing to the plan. The immediate course of action is for the board’s solicitor, Thomas Brennan, to meet with 6 Christopher Carr, shown here with his swing dance partner in October, invites the public to a Christmas Swing Dance on Dec. 14 at the John Paul II Center in Dallas. Girls are listening for the steps, but the guy thinks ahead, and it becomes like typing, when See SWING | 8 Ben Jones, solicitor for the Dallas School District. A reception was held after the meeting to honor Supervisors Grant and Frank Wagner on their election wins. I] 2007 9%ilg
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